


Incendiary

by Katiebug445



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pre series, apprentice!roy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-12
Updated: 2017-06-12
Packaged: 2018-11-13 02:55:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11175531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katiebug445/pseuds/Katiebug445
Summary: Clear your mind, focus on the spark, and remember to breathe.That’s what Berthold had repeated to him. Roy closed his eyes, his fingers brushing over the worn, rough fabric of his practice gloves, and took a deep breath. In his mind, he envisioned the spark, the flame, his target, twenty feet ahead of him and doused in gasoline. Mister Hawkeye stood some ways away, waiting to see what would happen, and in the back of his mind, Roy felt a small bit of pressure to do this right so he could move on with his training.





	Incendiary

_ Clear your mind, focus on the spark, and remember to breathe. _

 

That’s what Berthold had repeated to him. Roy closed his eyes, his fingers brushing over the worn, rough fabric of his practice gloves, and took a deep breath. In his mind, he envisioned the spark, the flame, his target, twenty feet ahead of him and doused in gasoline. Mister Hawkeye stood some ways away, waiting to see what would happen, and in the back of his mind, Roy felt a small bit of pressure to do this right so he could move on with his training. 

 

They’d been practicing the technique the last week - meditating so Roy could learn to clear his head, breathing to calm himself, and even the proper ways to hold his arm in case of an accident. 

 

This was his first test to show that he’d learned something. 

 

He extended his right hand, brushed his fingers together, and conjured the image of the flames again. Except this time, a pair of soft, brown eyes flashed through them. Taking one more breath, the young alchemist snapped his fingers, and immediately felt the burning licking its way up his hand. 

 

Trying not to scream, Roy removed the gloves, his jacket, and stomped the flames out, trying not to let the failure get to him. His hands stung, the skin red and already blistering from the burns, and his jacket steamed on the ground. Dejected, Roy turned to the older man, who just shook his head. 

 

“You didn’t clear your thick head, did you?” He asked, making his way across the yard to his apprentice. 

 

“I thought I did,” the boy answered. “But at the last second, I… I don’t know, something happened.” 

 

“We’ll keep working on it after we get those hands looked at.” 

 

~

 

_ Clear your mind, focus, breathe _

 

Roy stood outside in the dark, the wind blowing at his hair and making it difficult for him to see. The target still stood in front of him, the smell of gas still strong and burning his nose. He rose his bandaged hand, still sore from the afternoon’s events, and stared straight ahead.  _ Picture the spark,  _ he thought to himself.  _ Picture the spark…  _

 

After a full thirty seconds of standing stock still, looking like an idiot, Roy dropped his hand and let out a sigh. He’d been here six months now, and thus far had aced everything except this test. What was wrong with him? Why had he choked like that? 

 

_ Clear your mind…  _ Roy shut his eyes, focusing only on the sound of his own breathing and the sounds of the animals in the trees around him. He took steady, even breaths, relaxing himself so he could focus, and, slowly, began to see an image of a spark form behind his eyes. 

 

Instinctively, he reached out his hand again, fingers in position, and took another breath. 

 

_ Snap.  _

 

“Roy!” 

 

Losing concentration, the boy opened his eyes, and felt the burning in his hand begin again. He shook his arm, trying anything he could to get it to stop, and turned to face the house. Roy could feel heat of a different kind rising in his cheeks, and he swallowed, trying to calm himself enough that his voice could work. 

 

Riza was coming towards him, concern on her face, and hurried her way over. “What are you doing out here this late? You should be in bed.” 

 

“So should you. It’s late.” 

 

“Why are you out here? Don’t push yourself before you’re ready. You’ll get there eventually.” She reached out for him, laying a gentle hand on his arm that felt electrified when skin met skin. He was grateful for the darkness so she couldn’t see his face and how red it was, and allowed her to pull him back towards the house. 

 

“I just… thought… if I could get some practice in…” 

 

Once they got back inside, Riza stood in front of him and grabbed his hand, giving him a look. “What happened to you, today, Mustang? This needs to  _ heal  _ before you go doing something crazy and make it worse.” 

 

“I’ll fall behind if I wait too long!” 

 

Riza stood still for a moment, listening for any indication that her father had woken up, before answering the young apprentice. “Give it two days to heal. If you’re still hellbent on overworking yourself, come find me. I’ll help you. If nothing else, maybe we can at least stop you from burning yourself.” 

 

She let go of his hand finally, and he immediately missed the feeling. Without another word, Miss Hawkeye took off for the stairs, up to her own room, and after a moment, Roy followed along. 

 

Quietly, he opened the door to his own nook, and leaned against the wood for a moment. His hand still stung, though not nearly as bad as it did before, and his arm where she touched him tingled in a pleasant way. 

 

Eventually, he crossed the floor to his bed and lay down on his back, staring out the window at the moon, as he waited for sleep. 

 

~ 

 

“Don’t think of yourself as holding a weapon in your hand, think of the flame as an extension of yourself. You have to learn how to control it before you can use it.” 

 

The wind rustled the trees around them, and an owl hooted from its nest nearby. The air was crisp, and Roy could tell his cheeks and nose were pink for more than one reason. He stood still, with his eyes shut, while Riza paced behind him, trying to figure out what to tell him to do. “Raise your arm.” She ordered, and Roy did as told.

 

After a few seconds, he felt her hands on him, bending his elbow, turning his wrist, moving his fingers  _ just  _ a little… then they were gone. Roy could feel the electricity thrumming through him where she touched him, and, ever so slightly, his hands shook. 

 

Riza took a few steps, and was behind him again, changing the position of his shoulder, his back, and his hips. “You’re too tense. You need to relax some.” 

 

_ Good luck with that,  _ he thought to himself. “Can I open my eyes now?” 

 

“Is your mind clear?” 

 

_ No. Far from it.  _ “Yes.” 

 

“Then yes.” 

 

Not daring to look her way, he focused his eyes straight ahead and swallowed. He could still feel blisters across his fingers, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as it was. Still, though, the last thing he needed was to hurt himself even worse. Another injury like last time, and he’d be down for a good while.

 

Panic started to rise in his chest, and the boy shut his eyes again, trying to squash it.

 

“Don’t forget to breathe,” came her soft voice, from very close. 

 

Before he knew what happened, his fingers snapped, and he felt a surge of power shoot through his arm, and focus itself at a spot on the ground. The grass near his feet ignited, and, as if anticipating an accident, Riza grabbed a bucket of water and doused the flames before they got bigger. “Good start! Except next time, try not to light yourself or the surrounding area on fire.” 

 

Roy’s eyes were wide as he stared at the singed grass in front of him, still feeling her breath on his cheek, and couldn’t believe that he just did that. He did it. He actually did it! Elated, he lifted his eyes to the girl, a matching look of excitement on her own face. “How did you do that?” he asked her, a little louder than necessary. 

 

“I’ve watched my father for years, it’s just a matter of relaxing.” 

 

_ Well, that’s obviously not it.  _ Roy thought, feeling the tips of his ears warm again. “Can… can we do it again?” 

 

She gave him an answering nod and helped him get back into position, taking just a bit more time to make sure his stance was right than she needed. 

 

Now that he knew what to feel for, Roy took a breath, and reached for that same sensation as the last time. It took a moment, but with the snap of his fingers, he ignited the leaf on a nearby tree. 

 

“Whoa.” He said, a smile curling on his lips. 

 

Riza Hawkeye met his eyes, and the smile she gave him set every cell in his body on a fire warm enough that he didn’t feel the sting of the air anymore. 

 

~ 

 

Their practice continued for the next couple months, and he really was improving. It wasn’t taking him nearly as long to ignite anymore, and the flames were progressively getting more powerful with every attempt. 

 

He did have a few setbacks when Riza was standing too close, and he had a tendency to singe the hair on his head, and burn off one entire eyebrow. Berthold was pleased with his progress, though, which made everyone happy, and he informed the young apprentice that before too long, he would be a living, breathing weapon. 

 

The only problem was that he still needed help with his stance, which Riza was still patient to help with. 

 

~

 

At twenty-nine, Roy had completely surpassed his teacher in skill for alchemy as the years went by, and the flames came to him almost as easy as breathing. Berthold had been right; he had been turned into a weapon by the military, and by himself. He was a force to be reckoned with, and didn’t hesitate to light his enemies up if need be. Yes, he’d come a very long way in his journey, but part of him was still that young teenage boy who lit grass on fire because of a pretty girl. 

 

Roy could, even now, still feel Riza’s hands on him every time he rose his arm, her gentle, patient fingers moving him the way he needed to be, her kind, soft eyes looking back at him with a gentle blush on her cheeks, just wanting him to succeed. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to everyone who has taken a look at my stories and left kudos on my fics this week on here, and to everyone on tumblr who has left really sweet comments and reblogged the stories! This has been such a fun experience for me, and I'm so grateful to everyone who has taken time out of their day to read my contributions to RoyAi week 2017.   
> This has been fantastic, even though coming up with a story six of the seven days has been a bit stressful, and not having my own computer has been a pain in the ass, I have had so much fun!   
> The fans have been wonderful, the content everyone has put out has been so, so well done, and I'm really enjoying my time in the fandom!   
> Please give yourselves a pat on the back for being great people, and just know the newcomers really appreciate it!!!


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